Tag: Bay Leaves

I became addicted to British-style breakfast beans on toast after a friend introduced me to the glory of Heinz beans. They are traditionally difficult to find in American stores (and when you do, they are $4 a can!) so instead of buying, I devised a way to make a healthier (and way less expensive) version instead.

Beans and toast are a weekend staple. We make them at home for breakfast, and I always get a cup when I go to our favorite diner (Boston baked beans are everywhere in/around Boston). Most of the canned beans have an insane amount of sodium- one little can can have up to 150% of your daily amount, and are way too sweet for people who avoid added sugars. So we skip the cans and make this instead.

Put everything together in a crockpot Friday night before bed, and when you wake up breakfast is all but served!

Like this:

After making many many pots of lentil soup – I finally found the perfect recipe! Plus its vegan and gluten-free which is nice too. Also, it makes the perfect mason jar lunch for work, and is really filling but not too heavy. A winner right here 🙂

Veggie prep first: mince the garlic, finely dice the onion, chop the carrots into rounds, chop the celery, and dice the zucchini.

Rinse and drain the lentils, removing any discolored beans or any stones in there.

Begin by sautéing the garlic and onion in the sunflower oil on medium heat for 5 minutes, until the veggies get translucent. Then add the carrots and celery to the pot, and saute for 3 more minutes. Add the water and bullion cubes and bring to a boil.

Once boiling, add the lentils to the pot along with the tomatoes, zucchini, and bay leaves. Then turn heat down to low, and simmer the soup for 45 minutes stirring occasionally.

This was an improvised dinner, and one that turned out fantastic! We are moving in about 5 weeks, and I’m trying to think of ways to use what we already have in our pantry so we don’t have a ton of food to move. The solution: grab anything that’s half open and start getting creative!

Also, a very exciting note: my new kitchen is absolutely amazing! Its big, spacious, has great appliances, and even has an island. Can’t wait to get in there! Back to the recipe

I found half open bags of arborio and forbidden rice… and since they were both short grain rices that take a lot of water (and I didn’t have enough arborio for a full pot of risotto), I thought why not combine them! And I’m glad I did because when cooked risotto-style the forbidden rice turns this amazing deep purple color which was neat with the asparagus!

Also, for the past week I’ve been using a “stock bag” in the freezer – which is where I throw my leftover bits of carrots/onions/peels that I don’t use while cooking. So that’s why carrots ended up in the stock pot but not the recipe.

Chop the asparagus and mushrooms into bite sized pieces. Set aside in a bowl for now. Add the stems of the asparagus and mushrooms into a medium sauce pan. This will be for the stock.
Dice the onion and garlic finely. Peel one or two layers of the onion off first, and add to the stock pot. Add the bay leaves, carrots, bullion, and white wine to the stock pot and bring to a boil.

Wash and rinse rice thoroughly. Set aside for now.

In a large sauce pan, sautee the onion and garlic in the olive oil for about 5 minutes until soft but not brown. Add the rice, and sautee on low for 2-3 minutes. Once done, add the 1/8 cup of white wine to the pan to de-glaze.

Begin by adding 1/2 ladle fulls of the stock to the rice, gently stirring every minute. When rice absorbs the liquid, add another ladleful. Repeat about 20 minutes, until the rice begins to plump. Add the asparagus and mushroom pieces, and cook for an additional 15 minutes, until the rice is perfectly cooked.

I ended up having about 2 cups of leftover stock after cooking, but that’s always a great thing to have leftover! And, as the #1 rule when cooking with white wine: a little for the recipe, a little for the chef 🙂